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| *Ostroff, Fair and Company>>>Health Care |
What do hospital volunteers do? |
What exactly do volunteers do? I don't want to waste my time if I will just be pushing a cart of flowers around. I am working as a CNA at a nursing home, but am wondering if it would be worth my time to volunteer so that I can get exposure to a hospital setting before I apply to nursing school. Would I be doing essentially the same thing, or would I get more exposure to the hospital environment as a volunteer, or perhaps learn even less than a CNA would learn by working in a nursing home? Would other organizations like the Red Cross (or others-suggestions please) be better for me since I am already working as a CNA? I think it would be better to volunteer at the hospital if you were looking to be in that type of a setting. Check with your local hospital to see what volunteers do there. It is different everywhere. You could also try applying as a volunteer to a local ambulance service. That would guarantee you some time in the ER, up close and personal with patients. It is a humbling and great learning experience. I am doing that now. I will be a certified EMT in January. Can't wait! i DONT REAlly know much bout hospital...but what I think is that Ull rpbably be helping out in the kitchen with the food...and helping out with the serious mental kids N adults...I dont think theylll let U hep out as much as nurses do...well hope this helps =).... I dont think that volunteers do clinical work. Mostly unskilled labor. But some do clerical work and give directions to different parts of the hospital, and direct patients to the right departments. Answer phones, file, etc. I work in a hospital Working as a CNA in a nursing home is giving you more practical experience than volunteering at a hospital. At a hospital, you would be delivering mail, flowers, sitting at an information desk answering phones or giving directions around the hospital, or you might be able to transport patients to the lobby who are discharging. I think you should apply to work as a CNA in the hospital - that is the ideal job to get to prepare for (or work during) nursing school. The more hands-on patient care you do, the better off you'll be. RN my friend is a CNA and i am a volunteer, so i think i could shed some light on this. as a volunteer, i am not allowed to touch the patients. i do not "clean their bedpans" (like many assume we do- actually CNA's do that). we provide more emotional care more than anything else. when a patient is depressed we read to them, talk to them, or just provide company. occasionally we file paperwork or stock supplies, but mostly, we walk the floor and make sure the patients are as comfortable as possible. my friend, the CNA, basically gets all the grunt work. she cleans the patient, the room, and any messes the patient may make. she hates it, but it's a stepping stone she's taking to get into nursing school. if you want to learn procedural things, i would work as a CNA. but if you want to learn how to sympathize with patients, i'd try volunteering. hope this helps :) |
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